MUM Chelsie Taylor and her 10-year-old son Jack are taking on Wales’ highest mountain for a charity close to their hearts.

Chelsie and Jack are part of a team of six who will be climbing Mount Snowdon on Saturday for Unique, which supports families with rare chromosome disorders.

Chelsie lives in Knutsford with her husband Simon, and their 22-month-old son Theodore has 16p11.2 microdeletion syndrome.

He struggles with speech, language and walking because of low muscle tone and hypermobility.

The family has received crucial support from Unique, a UK-based charity, and as a thankyou Chelsie and Jack are to climb Snowdon with Jack’s nine-year-old cousin Maddie McGowan, Maddie’s mum Keeley, seven-year-old friend Morgan Millar and his mum Clare Heywood.

The family has already smashed its £500 target, having raised £2,112 via uk.virginmoneygiving.com/KeeleyMcgowan

Chelsie is a catering assistant at Pownall Hall School in Wilmslow, and husband Simon is a store assistant at Aldi in Knutsford.

Chelsie said: “We were referred to paediatric consultants at Macclesfield Hospital when Theo was six months old, as he wasn’t hitting his milestones.

“We soon found out he had low muscle tone and hypermobility. Theo was sent for genetic blood testing and we received the results in February.

“We were in complete shock when the consultant told us Theo has 16p11.2 microdeletion syndrome, a condition where a small part of Theo’s chromosome 16 is missing, on the P (short) arm of the chromosome.

“Typically, children with 16p11.2 microdeletion syndrome fit into one of three groups within this condition. Theo overlaps group 1 and group 2, making it even harder for anyone to tell us what the future holds.

“16p11.2 microdeletion syndrome symptoms can consist of learning difficulties, speech and language difficulties, obesity, epilepsy, autistic traits, heart and kidney problems and low muscle tone.

“Theo struggles with speech and language delays. He also struggles with reaching his milestones and delayed development, is small for his age and struggles walking because of his low muscle tone and hypermobility.

“He has Piedro boots to support his ankles and wears a soft helmet to help him, as when he falls he often can’t stop himself.

“Thankfully Theo has no issues with epilepsy, heart or kidney problems. But the future is still unknown as we have to wait and see how he progresses.

“We took to Facebook to share our story in a desperate bid to find more information. We made contact with Unique, (rarechromo.org) a UK-based charity that supports families with rare chromosome disorders.

“They provided us with a booklet about 16p11.2 microdeletion syndrome, and put us in contact with other families worldwide dealing with the same condition Theo has.

“We joined their private Facebook group so we no longer need to feel alone on this journey, and can gain 24-hour emotional and practical support through that group.

“Without the help we have received from Unique we would still feel lost and confused.

“Our eldest son Jack, and his nine-year-old cousin Maddie McGowan, decided they wanted to do something to help Theo, and to help other families like ours.

“They came up with the idea to climb Mount Snowdon to raise money for Unique. When their seven-year-old friend Morgan Millar heard about this he wanted to help too, so will be joining them.

“Myself, my sister Keeley McGowan (Maddie’s mum) and our friend Clare Heywood (Morgan’s mum) will be joining them on Saturday.”